Door latch



June 30, 1931. C, NORTQN DOOR LATCH Filed March 18, 1929 Lno enTor Charles N. Nofion Patented June 30, 1931 CHARLES M. NORTON, OF GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN DOOR LATCH Application filed March 18, 1929. Serial No. 347,765.

This invention relates to a door latch which is of particular utility when used in conjunction with garage doors. The latch is capable of use with a garage or any other type of door and may be operated at a distance from the doorto unlatch the same, or the door may be disengaged from the latch directly at the door itself.

The invention. resides in many novel constructions and arrangements of parts for effectively producing a simple, practical and serviceable latch of the character noted, understanding of which may be had fully from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1. is a fragmentary vertical section through a door and the adjacent upper portion of the door casing having the latch construction of my invention applied thereto, and with the door mounted to swing inwardl Fig. 2 is a like section illustrating the latch mechanism used onthe door, the door being mounted to swing outwardly.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section similar to that shown in Fig. 2, showing the manner in which the latch parts may be disengaged from a distance, and

' Fig. 4 is'a somewhat enlarged perspective view of one of the elements of the latch structure.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the different figures of the drawings.

The door 1 may be of any usual construction mounted for swinging movement about a vertical axis at one edge of the door and in which the upper end portion of the door engages against a stop 2,when door is in closed position. In Fig. 1 a stop 2 is positioned with reference to the door so that the door may swing inwardly but not outwardly and in Fig. 2 this position is reversed.

. Thedoor stop2 is secured underneath an upper bar 3 which is at the upper side of the door opening which opening is made in the garage wall 4 in the usual manner.

In the construction shown in Fig. 1, two vertical latching rods 5 are mounted for slidable movement at the inner side of the door in upper'guides 6 and lower sleeves 7 which have a slot'in one side thereof, the rods being turned outwardly at right angles, as indicated at 8, and extending through slots in the door to the outer side thereof. A coiled spring 9 within the sleeve 7, which has a closed lower end, normally serves to lift each rod 5 to an upper position. But by engaging with the end of the handle 8 and pressing downwardly thereon the rod may be moved to a lower position as is evident.

In Fig. 2 where the door is mounted to swing outwardly the rods 5 are mounted in the same manner but on the outer side of the door and the handles 8 are shorter and extend outwardly through slots in the sleeves 7. They likewise are operable at the outside of the door.

A cooperating latching element is mounted at the underside of the bar 3 extending away from the stop 2 over the upper edge of the door 1. In the form shown in Fig. 2,

where the door swings outwardly, the latch element consisting of plate 10 and an upwardly extending bar 11 integral therewith, is permanently secured to the underside of the bar 3, said bar 11 passing upwardly at the outer side of the building; while in the structure shown in Fig. 1 the bar 11 is turned upwardly at the inner side of the building and at its upper end is provided with an arm 11a as shown.

At the lower side of the plate 10 detents 12, preferably of spring material, are permanently secured at one end, extending outward- 1y at their free ends beyond the bar 3 and near their free ends having openings through which the rods 5 may pass. The free ends of the detents 12 are curved upwardly.

A wire or cable 13 is attached to the free end of each detent 12 extending upwardly therefrom and the two wires converge and connect together and to the lower end of a third wire or cable 14 which is secured to the upper end of the bar 11 in the construction shown in Fig. 2 or to the end of the arm 11a 9 in the construction shown in Fig. 1. A wire or cable 15 is connected to the several wires 13 and 14: at their juncture and extends outwardly and away from the building or garage. This necessitates, in the structure which it may be led whereupon the detents 12 are lifted, as indicated in Fig. 3, disengagmg the same fromthe-upper ends of the rods 5. The door 1n such cases 1s disengaged and free for'movement' and usually in such a case the door is operated by weights *or springs so as to open freely as soon as the latching disengagement has been efl'ected.- It is evident that on closing the doors, the upper ends of the rods pass under the upturned curved free ends of the detents 12 until the openings through said detents are reached whereupon the upper end portions of the rods are received in the openings and latchthe doors in closed position.

' The bar 11 in either of the structures is preferably provided with an opening 11?) directly opposite the point where the wire 15 joins the flexible cables 13 and 14- so that the wire 15 may be extended in the opposite direction throughthe opening 116 as indicated at 15a in Fig. 1. 'By this means the ,wire 15 may be extended in'either direction in either of the structures for operation from either inside or outside of the building as desired. This is feasible because it makesno difference which direction the cables 13 and 14 are flexed from straight line position to lift the detents 12.

This construction of door latching device is simple and easy to manufacture and is quickly and readily installed. It is, as fully set forth in the previous description, applicable and useful irrespectiveof the direction in which the doors swing. Variations in the details of construction may be resorted to without departing from my invention which is defined in the appended claims and istobe considered comprehensive of all forms of structure coming within the scope'of said claims.

1. In combination, a door, a' door frame around the door, a vertical rod mountedon the door, a spring member attached at one end to. the door frame over said door and extending over said rod and having means with which said rod engages, a cableattached at one end to the free end of the spring member and at itsopposite end having a permanent connection, and a second cable secured to the first cable between its ends and extending away therefrom at substantially a' right angle, whereby on pulling on said second cable the spring member may be lifted to disengage from said rod.

2. In a construction of the class described, a door, a door frame around the door, two rods mounted on the door having ends thereof extending beyond an edge of the door, a plate secured to the door frame and provided with a bar at one side extending at right angles to said plate and away from the door, two spring members secured at one end to a side of the plate and extending across the ends of said 'rods,'and provided with means to engage with said rods, cables attached one to the free end oieach of the spring members, said cables converging and joining together, asecondQcable attached to said bar at their converging ends, and a third cable connectedto all of said cables at the juncture thereof,

adapted to'extend outwardly in a horizontal direction for the purposes described.- 7

In a latching device of the character de scribed, a plate of flat metal having a bar bent therefrom at right angles. at one edge, a 1

spring member secured at one end to oneside of the plate and having a. free end portion extending beyond the edgeof theplate'to which saidibar is'located, said springmember being provided with means to effect latching engagement thereof with a rod or bolt, a cable connecting the free end of sald member and said bar, and a second cable connected to the first cable between its ends extending therefrom to a distance-wherebythe spring'member may be drawn toward the said base on pulling on the second cable.

4 In combination with a door and door casing, a latch'bolt on said door, a yieldable keeper on said door casing, interengageable means on said keeper and latch bolt, a flexible member extending substantially in alinement with the direction'of'movement of said keeper, said flexible member being attached at one end to said keeper and having its opposite end fixed relative to the casing and means connected to' said flexible member between its ends extending away therefrom at substantially right angles and operable'to flex said member out of straight line position whereby the keeper. is moved away from said bolt.

5. In combination with a door and door frame, latch bolt mounted on the ldoor, a plate mounted on the door frame,1a1 spring keeper flx'ed at one end to said-plate and having its other end movable relative to the plate, interengaging means on the keeper and latch bolt, an arm extending rigidlyffro'm said plate, a flexible member extending substantiallyin alinement with the movement of the free end of the spring keeper, said flexible member being attached at one end to the free end of said keeper and at its opposite end to said 'arm, the middle portion of said flexible member being normally spaced from said arm and operating means connectedto' said flex- Jim ible member between its ends for flexing said flexible member out of straight line position,

said flexible member being operable when flexed in any direction lateral to its longitude.

6. In a device of the class described, a plate, two spring keepers, each fixed at one end to said plate and each having a movable free end, an arm on said plate, two flexible members, one for each spring keeper, each flexible member extending substantially in alinement with the movement of the free end of the keeper and each having one end attached to the free end of the keeper, the opposite ends of the flexible members being joined, a continuation flexible member attached to the joined ends of the two flexible members and having its opposite end attached to said arm and means connected to said flexible members between the fixedly connected end and the ends attached to the keepers for flexing said members out of straight line position.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

' CHARLES M. NORTON. 

